Meet Ali Sahraoui, the man who spent hours digging Rayan (5) with his bare hands

Meet Ali Sahraoui, a young man in his fifties, grandfather, and experienced well digger. Ali toiled for hours to free five-year-old Rayan from a deep well. He dug with his bare hands until he finally reached Rayan. Unfortunately, all the help for the Moroccan toddler came too late.

Yesterday evening at about 9.35 pm, the lifeless body of the five-year-old boy Rayan was retrieved from a well in the north of Morocco. The days and hours that preceded that were nerve-wracking. There were several dangers of collapse, and the rescue workers suffered from a lack of oxygen because they were more than 30 meters below the ground. Ali Sahraoui volunteered his expertise, kept a cool head, and continued to dig with his bare hands.

Meanwhile, the images of the man are going around the world. He set to work wearing a simple blue sweater, long pants, and leather shoes. Every now and then, he stopped to have a drink of water and something to eat.

Video footage also shows how the thousands of bystanders loudly shouted Sahraoui’s name, cheered the man on, and in this way gave them the courage to continue working.

Sahraoui was, therefore, the one who carefully cleared the last meters of sand between Rayan and the rescuers. Unfortunately, all help came too late, and the little boy’s body was found lifeless.

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